Cleggy, still stuffing the Lords with his friends

Argument: The Deputy PM is threatening the stability of our country because of his hatred for unelected peers

Given all this moaning from Nick Clegg about the unelected House of Lords, I pottered down there yesterday to have a look at the place. Arrived just in time to watch a new Life Peer being introduced. Name of Trees, a vet. Lib Dem, as it happens.

So Cleggy is threatening the stability of our country because he hates unelected peers – but is simultaneously still stuffing the Upper House with his little friends. Isn’t he a marvel? The Chamber was not full, despite there now being close to 1,000 peers, but Questions drew a reasonable gate and some fairly specialised banter. Subjects under discussion: drug addiction, copyright exemption for schools, Chinese mining in Africa, this week’s family planning conference in London.

The first question was put by the Earl of Sandwich, a soft-spoken Crossbench hereditary. His medical question was answered by Health Minister Earl Howe, equally serious and moderate of mien.

Supplementaries came from the likes of Lord Patel of Bradford, a sometime ambulanceman, Lib Dem veteran Dick Taverne, and Lady Meacher, an expert on mental health.

Alan Howarth barged into the debate. Lord Howarth was once a Tory MP who defected to the Blairites. He was later given a peerage. Was his ennoblement wafted under his snout at the time of his defection? Dunno.

Defector: Emma Nicholson

Other defectors in this Lords include Hugh Dykes, Emma Nicholson, John Lee and Peter Temple-Morris (all Lib Dem) and Quentin Davies (Lab). Striking, is it not, that the party which poses as the champion of democracy has been so quick to bung peerages to floor-crossers.

The next question was put by Joan Bakewell, once Harold Pinter’s popsy but now a Labour Lady. Her voice has not lost its throaty timbre – warm red vermouth to the ears.

Several peers who addressed the copyright matter were authors but sadly there was no sign of PD James (Con) or Ruth Rendell (Lab).

Next we had the China question from Lord Elton, a hereditary Tory ex-schoolmaster. The minister at the despatch box was Lord Howell, who served in Mrs Thatcher’s Cabinet and is George Osborne’s pa-in-law.

Paddy Ashdown and Nigel Lawson threw in some observations.

Interventions were on the long side and were initiated with an aggression not much found this end of Westminster until about three years ago. The professional politicians have ruined the place.The family planning thing was raised by Jack McConnell, ex-First Minister of Scotland. Glenys Kinnock put a supplementary from the Labour front bench. Glenys! At least Cherie Blair is not a member. Grief, what a dreadful thought.

Dotted round the House one saw a mixture of experts, celebs and more than a few ex MPs. On the Lib Dem benches, for instance, we had kiddies’ TV presenter Floella Benjamin, SDP co-founder Bill Rodgers, and three minor ex-MPs in David Chidgey, Nigel Jones and Jenny Tonge. Jones is that one who was attacked by a man with a sword at his constituency office in Cheltenham. Nasty incident but arguably a career boost.

The Tories were fielding the likes of Lady Trumpington, ciggy-voiced flicker of V signs, financial journalist Patience Wheatcroft and Howard Flight, who was unfairly dropped from the Commons by Michael Howard. The Lords has long been used by party leaders as a consolation prize.

Over on the Labour side: ex Commons fixer Jack Cunningham, sometime Basildon MP Angela Smith and Lord Barnett, once a Treasury minister. Lord Pearson of Rannoch was also on the Opposition benches. He is a Ukip peer. It seems inexcusable that there are not more Ukip peers. Did yesterday’s exchanges teach us anything new about the House of Lords?

There was possibly an air of fatalism on the breeze. Behaviour has worsened. The bias is not only towards political parties but towards vested interests and Establishment views.

I count myself a romantic traditionalist but can not summon much enthusiasm for the place. It has lost the unpredictability and refreshing directness it had before Tony Blair started mucking about with it. Mr Clegg’s proposals are not right but this Lords could certainly do with some sort of a reboot. Lord Trees may not have time to take root.